Johns Creek Arts, Cultural, and Entertainment Committee Meeting – July 10, 2025

The Johns Creek Arts, Cultural, and Entertainment (ACE) Committee met on Thursday, July 10, 2025, at 11360 Lakefield Drive, Johns Creek, GA. The meeting was called to order at 6:31 p.m. and adjourned at 7:55 p.m. No public comments were offered. The Committee received City updates, heard from Autrey Mill Nature Preserve, approved prior meeting minutes, recapped the 2025 Juneteenth Celebration, and discussed—then tabled—event attendance measurement options.

Reports & Presentations

• City Update: Olivia Gazda, Assistant to the City Manager, reported that Diwali Market applications (stage performers, retail vendors, activity vendors, nonprofits, and sponsorships) are open on Eventeny and due September 26, 2025. Trunk or Treat is scheduled for the evening of October 22, 2025, with trunk and sponsorship applications due October 14, 2025; the event benefits the Public Safety Foundation, and pre-packaged candy or other in-kind donations are welcome. The Artist Registry continues accepting applications, and the City is exploring ways to promote the 1% for Art program to existing businesses. She also highlighted the Movies at Newtown series beginning July 11, 2025, now using an actual screen.
• Autrey Mill Nature Preserve: Lizen Hayes, Executive Director, presented on the 501(c)(3) organization, which has preserved the 46-acre site since 1989 and is run by a volunteer board. The preserve includes a historic village, animal ambassadors, gardens, and a 1.3-mile trail loop. Hayes estimated summer camp funds about 50% of the budget and rentals about 20%, with the remainder from grants, memberships, and fundraising. Current projects include the Green Store Letters Project, butterfly garden expansion, and an animal habitat rebuild. She highlighted partnerships including Contemporary Classics (Shakespeare in the Park), Behind the Music Live with Craig Gleason, and Kaiser Permanente senior healthy living programs, and she requested sponsorship support for upcoming events.

Discussion Items

• Juneteenth Celebration Recap: Staff reported the third annual Juneteenth Celebration took place June 21, 2025, from 5–9 p.m. at Newtown Park Amphitheatre, with an estimated 2,500 attendees—the largest turnout to date despite the heat. Entertainment was emceed by Eryn Rogers (the transcript refers to Aaron Rogers) and included the Wonders of Worship Youth Choir, the Karla Harris Quartet, and Okorie 'OkCello' Johnson. Five food trucks reported selling out or nearly selling out, retail vendors were pleased, there were 21 volunteers, and the Kids Zone was well received. Staff corrected the agenda report's sponsorship total from $7,550 to $8,050 (17 sponsors). Improvement areas for 2026 include adding more food/sweet-treat vendors, adjusting food truck layout, and improving entertainment flow/energy with interactive elements such as line dancing. Chair Zach Hahn, who attended, offered suggestions: address entrance congestion near the food trucks, reconsider vendor tent placement on the terraces, consider additional shade tents or side-field vendor space, and explore geofenced Uber/Lyft pickup/drop-off zones. Staff agreed to compile this feedback for the Juneteenth Planning Committee.
• Event Attendance Measurement Discussion: At Chair Hahn's request, staff explained current estimation methods: aerial/drone imagery, manual clicker counts, post-event surveys, crowd-density calculations, vendor sales, activity-station participation, block counting, parking capacity, and historical venue data, using at least three methods per event. Staff noted Placer.ai cell-phone tracking was previously used but deemed cost prohibitive. For the 2025 Daffodil Days Carnival, ticketing and checkpoints were explored, but the Fire Marshal prohibited enclosing Heisman Field; volunteer clicker counts also suffered from attrition. Neighboring cities use similar estimation approaches. Staff presented two options: (1) giveaway items to establish a minimum attendance count, and (2) automated infrared counters placed at entrances. Committee members expressed differing views: one member supported giveaways as a fiscally conservative, sponsor-funded option; another supported automated counters as a roughly $250–$500 one-time purchase that reduces volunteer burden; and another questioned whether the City was solving a real problem, given existing methodologies. Staff stated they did not currently see an issue with existing estimates. The item was tabled. During discussion, staff shared a preliminary Independence Day fireworks estimate of 12,000–15,000 people in the park, with possibly 10,000 more outside the park; calculations were still ongoing.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the May 8, 2025 ACE meeting minutes as presented by unanimous consent following a motion and second.
• Staff will share Juneteenth feedback, including Chair Hahn's comments, with the Juneteenth Planning Committee.
• Tabled the event attendance measurement discussion; no new funding or pilot was authorized.
• Voted to amend the adopted calendar to move the next ACE meeting from August 14 to August 7, 2025, at 6:30 p.m.
• Adjourned at 7:55 p.m.